Resources

123Apps is a brilliant website if you need to edit audio or video files quickly and easily. It's a handy one-stop-shop with lots of different functions all under one umbrella, all of which are super easy to navigate and use.

Adding image descriptions will make your social media more inclusive, accessible and successful. Read our guide on how to create image descriptions on each social media platform.

We have compiled a list of our favourite assistive technology that offer free trials, so you can take them for a test drive!

Audio Notetaker is an audio-based PC software program for easy note taking. This can be used with a Dictaphone or digital voice recorder, to upload audio notes, presentations and your own notes. Lectures often contain Microsoft PowerPoint slides and these can be uploaded into Audio Notetaker along with the audio that the student has recorded.

Balabolka is a text-to-speech program for PCs which works with all computer voices installed on your system. It is able to recognise multiple file formats and the on-screen text can be saved in a wide range of audio formats.

Boxifier is a free service the backs up your My Documents folder to keep work safe!

Calm.com is a website and app that helps you practise mindfulness. There are now lots of apps that help you practice mindfulness; what makes Calm stand out is its visual presentation (especially when viewed via the website).

Care Your Eyes is a free plugin for the Google Chrome web browser that makes it easier to read text from websites. It lets you quickly change the colour of the background and text in web pages.

Cite This For Me is a free referencing tool designed to take the frustration out of keeping track of your research and creating bibliographies. Cite This For Me allows you to quickly gather reference information from a variety of sources, and then export these as a fully formatted bibliography using the referencing style of your choice.

ClaroRead is a toolbar with lots of useful features for reading and proofreading. Its main feature is text-vocalisation; reading text out using a synthetic voice. These voices are now quite life-like and there are lots of advantages to reading this way.

ClaroView and ScreenRuler are programs that change the look of your screen to make reading easier. They both come as part of the ClaroRead Plus package but can also be bought separately.

Coggle is a free cloud-based concept mapping program - unlike most programs of this sort, it makes a feature of its simplicity. Coggle focuses on allowing users to collaborate quickly and easily on maps by removing what it describes as 'clutter' and 'unnecessary information'; it has a deliberately minimalistic design.

This handout is a guide to compiling a bibliography (Harvard Style).

A wonderful collection of videos from the D&A Team that explore some of the same fantastic range of AT that you find on the Resources page.

If you find a computer keyboard difficult to use, or if you simply find that watching your fingers when you type means that you make mistakes, it might be a good idea to learn to touch type, (touch typing means being able to look at the screen when you are typing, and training yourself to remember where the keys are).

Some resources for support workers to ensure their students get the most out of remote support. This includes a handy downloadable guide and webinar.

While speech-to-text programs such as Dragon are certainly powerful (and sometimes available via a DSA or Access to Work application), many learners may not have an opportunity to use these tools due to their cost. Dictation.io is a website that offers a free, web browser based alternative.

Dictionary.com is a free-to-access online dictionary, with apps available for both iOS and Android phones. You can also create an account at Dictionary.com, (or simply login using facebook), allowing you to save custom word lists to look back at later on.

Using a digital recorder to record lectures and seminars is a strategy that can make a real difference to how much information you retain. This is especially true if you have difficulty taking notes while listening to the lecturer and reading lecture slides at the same time.

Doodle is a popular free service for scheduling meetings. By creating a free Doodle account, you can easily create links to online "polls" - basically, a list of suggested meeting dates which allow potential attendees to respond with their availability.

With Dragon Dictate you can produce reports, email, articles, books, research notes, online content and more - quickly, easily and accurately. Smart phone and tablet users can connect Dragon to their mobile devices and talk into its built in microphones to allow the words to type up on your computer screen.

The Dragon Dictation app allows users to speak into their smart phone and Dragon will type it up. This is really useful for people who find typing hard and feel they get their ideas down a lot quicker if they speak out loud. This app is also great for dictating any emails or texts.

Dragon Naturally Speaking is a potentially life-changing speech-to-text tool. It allows you to dictate what you want to type, rather than needing to type text correctly into the computer.

Dropbox is a service that lets you back up files so they are safe and on hand when you need them!

This is your guide to the Disabled Student Allowances (DSA) process. When you're first starting out it can all seem a bit daunting. D&A are here to help! This handy step-by-step guide will show you all the things you need to do to get up and running with your DSA support.

A guide to breaking down an essay, before you even start to think about writing it.

See your whole essay at a glance and keep from losing your thread as you write with this Essay Planning Guide

Essay Writer 3D is a concept mapping program, (much like Mindview, Mindmanager, or Inspiration). It allows you to create "spider diagrams" or "mind maps" on your computer. Unlike other similar programs, Essay Writer 3D pitches itself as being a tool specifically for turning your maps into essays, (as opposed to, say, creating a revision map).

Evernote is software designed for note taking and archiving. It enables you to save and collate "notes" of all different kinds: regular text, a webpage, a photograph, a voice memo, or even a handwritten note. You can add file attachments to notes and also sort them into folders, tag, edit, comment on and share notes.

F.lux is a great tool that adjusts your screen's brightness according to the time of day. Staring at a bright screen, especially at night, is hard on your eyes and it can affect your sleep too. F.lux learns where you are and where the sun is in the sky and matches your screen to your eyes.

The Frantic World website is a lovely resource for anyone interested in Mindfulness. In the Resources page of the website, you will find several free meditations from three books that accompany the website.

When you misspell a word, Global Autocorrect immediately corrects any mistakes. You don't even have to stop typing while it does this - it's just as if you had spelled the word right in the first place.

Google Calendar and Google Tasks are free, Internet based, calendar and task management tools. You can never lose your calendar or diary as it is stored online!

Google Docs is a free word processing and document management program that features many of the tools you might expect to find in Microsoft Word - as well as some extra tools that Word doesn't have!

Google Drive is a free cloud storage application, similar to Dropbox or Microsoft OneDrive. The basic principle behind having your files stored in "the cloud" is that you can easily back up documents, photos and other files just by saving them to a specific folder on your computer - your Google Drive folder.

Google Keep is a free cloud-based notetaking app which is excellent for capturing ideas, setting yourself reminders, and making checklists. It's similar to Evernote, in the sense that any notes you capture on your phone are immediately available to you on a PC or Mac when you log in with a Google account.

Grammarly is a free contextual proofreading tool: it's an advanced grammar, spelling, and punctuation tool that's integrated into your Chrome web browser! Not only does Grammarly help correct mistakes it helps improve one's grammar. Each suggested correction comes with a short explanation. And that explanation can be expanded to give more detail and show examples.

When you have academic deadlines looming, the Xbox or PS4 can certainly seem like an unwelcome distraction! However, the science behind why games are so engaging can be turned to our benefit. Yes, you read that correctly; playing a game can help you get more done!

Howjsay is a talking dictionary of English pronunciation. It allows you to easily check how words sound without learning any phonemic symbols. It uses audio of real speakers!

There’s finally somewhere you can search quickly and easily to find local and national mental health services, reminding us that there is always somebody to talk to.

Inspiration is a concept mapping tool that supports visual, non-linear thinking. You can create diagrams to explore your ideas, plan essays and presentations, or organise tasks.

iThoughts is a touchscreen, mind mapping tool for the iPhone and iPad. Use it to create detailed visual plans, take colour-coded notes, or just to throw down as many ideas as you can about something, wherever you are. It lets you incorporate images, hyperlinks and various other resources into each idea.

Learn My Way, brought to you by the The Good Things Foundation, offers free courses to learn digital skills to stay safe and connected.

This handout is a quick guide for all the OS X keyboard shortcuts.

We've put together some tips to help you identify the sources and signs of stress, as well as how to manage it.

The Merriam-Webster App (available for Android and iOS) is a free dictionary, much like dictionary.com and its associated apps. There is a free version of the app available which includes many of the features of the paid version.

Word is the foundation for so much of what we do with our computers. Many of the programs described in this page, like concept mapping and text-to-speech programs, work closely with Word. Word is also very familiar. But there are hidden depths to the program and new features are added all the time.

This isn't a regular piece of software that's used in D&A training; it's very similar to Mind View and Mind Manager with time management help, but designed more for business projects. It helps you to capture, visualise and manage ideas and information in clearly structured ways.

MindManager is a concept mapping program which allows you to create 'spider diagrams' or 'mind maps'. Creating a mind map can help you to plan and write essays, revise for exams, and organise large projects.

MindMeister is a concept mapping program which allows you to create 'spider diagrams' or 'mind maps'. Creating a mind map can help you to plan and write essays, revise for exams, and organise large projects.

MindShift is a free app designed to offer practical support in relation to feelings of anxiety. Rather than suggesting that you avoid situations that create anxiety, the app guides you towards opportunities to face them in a constructive way.

MindView is a mind-mapping software package; it is an excellent resource for learners who want to plan their essays visually, or create multi-sensory revision maps.

My Study Bar is free assistive technology software for PCs. It is a toolbar at the top of your screen from which you can open a range of different free programs.

NaturalReader is a text-to-speech (TTS) program that can be used to listen back to Word documents, PDF files and web pages using a synthetic voice.

"Smart solutions based on the challenges disabled people face every day". Welcome & Button are two apps that anticipate the daily needs of disabled people, making life easier and more inclusive.

Online exam guide giving you all the technical, practical and study tips you'll need to prepare for an online open-book exam.

Open Office is a suite of open source software containing word processing, spread sheet, presentation, graphics and database applications. It works with most operating systems and supports of 120 languages. It can also handle other file formats including those from Microsoft Office.

There are lots of great things about working with text on a computer: you can copy and paste it, make colour highlights, search for words and have the text read out loud. But to do all these things, your computer has to recognize the text as text - not just an image.

This handout is a quick guide for all the Windows keyboard shortcuts.

Provides a useful and effective way of structuring your paragraphs.

Prezi is an online presentation tool which works very differently from Microsoft Powerpoint (or any program that shows slides). In Prezi, your content is arranged over a broad canvas that you can zoom in and out of, either by clicking on key points with the mouse, or by programming the order in which each element is focussed on.

Quizlet is a free learning and revision tool. It was originally designed by a high school student to help with learning languages, but you can adapt this tool for any course of study.

Read&Write is a program that contains lots of tools for working with text. Its central feature is text-vocalisation; reading text aloud using a natural sounding, synthetic voice. As well as vocalising the text, the program highlights it so you can follow along.

Read&Write for Google Chrome is a Text-to-Speech program (TTS) that can be used to listen back to text that appears in web pages or in the online word processor Google Docs.

It's really handy to be able to scan documents when you're away from your computer - e.g. in a library, lecture, or meeting. Taking a photo is fine but scanner apps do even more!

If you are aware that you have a specific learning difference (SpLD), such as dyslexia or dyspraxia, you may also be familiar with the terms 'visual stress', 'scotopic sensitivity' or 'Irlen syndrome'. These are all phrases that describe the experience of finding black text on a white background difficult to look at for more than a short period of time.

Point the reader in the right direction whilst making connections between ideas and arguments in your essay or presentation.

This program is used for the Olympus Dictaphone series. It allows the user to load up their audio notes onto their computer, which they have recorded on the dictaphone. Users can edit their recordings as well as creating audio notebook files. Files recorded on their Dictaphone can be renamed as well as placed into specific folders.

A method of active and effective reading showing you how to oragnise information.

Studyblue is an online study and revision tool, based around the idea of using "index cards" to make new information memorable. You may have tried the "index card" system before - writing questions or prompts on one side of a card, and then writing the answer on the other so that you can systematically work through your deck to revise.

A list of task words that can be used to help understand assignment briefs

Jack and Jess are the names of voices you can add to your text-to-speech program. They are both natural sounding voices and can be added for free!

UK Elections can seem overwhelming. There's so many of them and they seem to happen all the time! What is even the point of voting anyway? We've broken it all down for you with this handy guide. There is even a downloadable pdf for general elections you can share with colleagues, peers, or friends, family. Gain understanding in the UK voting system so you can feel confident every election day.

This handy guide offers an overview of all the most popular online video-conference platforms, comparing the pros and cons to help you choose which one is right for you.

We have compiled the quick-links to the security and privacy statements for all our favourite video-conference platforms, to save you time and headache!

This handout shows different ways of referencing in an essay (Harvard Style).

Wordflex is a beautiful way to find the perfect word for your writing. It presents information about a word in a mind map - showing the word's different meanings, its synonyms, and even its origin!

Xmind is a concept mapping program, (much like Mindview, Mindmanager, and Inspiration), which allows you to create 'spider diagrams' or 'mind maps' on your computer. Creating a mind map can help you to plan and write essays, revise for exams, and organise large projects.

Zotero makes referencing really easy!

An amazingly easy-to-use referencing or bibliographic tool that you can access from any computer or device, without creating an account or installing any software.